On Saturday, three San Francisco schools with a multitude of SFEA players participated in CIF's first Northern California championships for boys and girls soccer. St. Ignatius College Preparatory sought a boys Division I title; University High School chased a boys Division III title; and Lowell High School took the field seeking a girls Division IV title. While University came up just short, losing on a golden goal, both St. Ignatius boys and Lowell High School girls won their championship games on golden goals. In both SI's and Lowell's case, the golden goal was scored by an SFEA player–Alex Bailey netted for SI and Sarah Ginsburg for Lowell.

Each of the teams' rosters were littered with San Francisco Elite Academy players, who used their break from club play in the winter to lead their respective high school teams. St. Ignatius boys soccer features 7 players from SFEA, University High School boys 6 players, and Lowell High School 10 players. The large number of SFEA players in these dominant programs and others making a splash in San Francisco (like Sacred Heart that claimed a CCS section crown for both its boys and girls programs this year) is a testament to how the SFEA has helped elevate the level of soccer in the city.

"Our soccer program supports high school soccer," said Joe Dugan, President of the San Francisco Elite Academy. "While we are well aware that college recruiters lean heavily on club play as a measuring stick for a player's potential, high school soccer remains a unique and valued playing environment that affords the player a chance to stay sharp in winter and make memories that last a lifetime. And, critically, we have a number of really terrific high school programs in San Francisco led by very capable and accomplished coaches."

Congratulations to these programs and the many others here in the city that had terrific high school season.